BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio Domogan assured vehicle owners that smoke-belching testing will be done in a more convenient setting, given the noted increase in those interested in voluntary testing.
There are plans to buy more smoke-belching testing machines, to eliminate public utility vehicle and private car drivers’ waste of precious time waiting for their turn, the mayor said.
The spacious Baguio Convention Center compound is eyed to be the testing venue, making it accessible and more convenient for vehicle owners, instead of the City Environment and Parks Management Office (CEPMO) Sanitary Camp area.
The mayor said operations will be coordinated with the Transport Council, Roadside Monitoring and air ambience group, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and concerned agencies.
Tampering with vehicles to hide smoke-belching, however was observed.
Mayor Domogan thus appealed to private testing centers to strictly implement standards, and consider the pollution brought about by improperly maintained vehicle running in the streets. The biggest source of pollution in the city is vehicle exhaust, it was known.
Air quality should be considered for the city constituents’ health, the mayor ended./Julie G. Fianza
